Snowflake Eal Emergency

[EliMelly]

Hello,

I just bought a baby snowflake eel, about 8 inches long and he got stuck to the side of my MP40 for about a second. He initially curled up into a ball and a then flipped upside down. I turned him over and noticed that part of his top fin seemed to be a bit shaven off. He is currently very sluggish and not moving around. Please let me know if there is anything I can do or if you think he will be okay.

Microphone misspelled eel…

 

[JC1977]

Just give him a few days to recoup. He’s in a new environment and now has an injury. If it’s just the top of the fin he should be fine assuming he was otherwise healthy to start.

 

[EliMelly]

Just give him a few days to recoup. He’s in a new environment and now has an injury. If it’s just the top of the fin he should be fine assuming he was otherwise healthy to start.

Thanks so much, appreciate it! Was quite difficult to watch happen.

 

[JC1977]

Thanks so much, appreciate it! Was quite difficult to watch happen.

Just keep an eye on him. Something about eels and vortech power heads. My zebra moray would actually bite them when he first went in the tank lol he’s fine though and has decided he likes shrimp better.

 

[EliMelly]

Just keep an eye on him. Something about eels and vortech power heads. My zebra moray would actually bite them when he first went in the tank lol he’s fine though and has decided he likes shrimp better.

Will do! Haha I am new to the hobby and it is a lot to pick up!

 

[JC1977]

Will do! Haha I am new to the hobby and it is a lot to pick up!

All good you’re in the right place. Tons of good advice given here. Best I can give you right now is don’t have knee jerk reactions when something happens. Patience patience patience. That’s the name of the game. I think your eel should be fine in a week or so. If he eats your gold.

 

[EliMelly]

Thank you I really appreciate it. Now dealing with hitchhikers…

All good you’re in the right place. Tons of good advice given here. Best I can give you right now is don’t have knee jerk reactions when something happens. Patience patience patience. That’s the name of the game. I think your eel should be fine in a week or so. If he eats your gold.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

Hello,

I just bought a baby snowflake eel, about 8 inches long and he got stuck to the side of my MP40 for about a second. He initially curled up into a ball and a then flipped upside down. I turned him over and noticed that part of his top fin seemed to be a bit shaven off. He is currently very sluggish and not moving around. Please let me know if there is anything I can do or if you think he will be okay.

Microphone misspelled eel…

I'm concerned that the eel looks REALLY thin. It may have gotten caught in the pump due to being weak from lack of food energy. Has it eaten for you yet?

Jay

 

[EliMelly]

I'm concerned that the eel looks REALLY thin. It may have gotten caught in the pump due to being weak from lack of food energy. Has it eaten for you yet?

Jay

No, I just got him today. I dropped a piece of a frozen silverside in but he’s not moving.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

No, I just got him today. I dropped a piece of a frozen silverside in but he’s not moving.

Can you contact the store to see if it was eating for them? I think you may have inherited this problem. One other possibility - do you know the salinity of the water it was in compared to your tank?

Jay

 

[EliMelly]

Can you contact the store to see if it was eating for them? I think you may have inherited this problem. One other possibility - do you know the salinity of the water it was in compared to your tank?

Jay

Yes, I will call them as soon as they open. When I spoke to them they claimed he was eating for two weeks. I do not know what the salinity at the store was but he was swimming completely normally until he hit the pump literally 5 minutes in the tank. His behavior only changed after the wavemaker.

 

[vetteguy53081]

This is not a case where you keep an eye on it- Eels become infected easily from injury especially bacterial and agree with Jay on thin body mass. They produce heavy mucus for their bodies as a means of protection against disease and injury as they have no scales. To prevent infection, you will need to do daily water changes as often, medicating or treatment is risky. I trust Ruby Rally Pro around them, but even still avoid such.
They dont need to eat frequently but also store fat and this looks like an eel that has not eaten in some time. For feeding, a long forceps or tweezers is a valuable tool for feeding them as they rarely chase their food source. Some foods to offer are: mussels, squid strips, octopus, Silversides (small fish) wiggling them slowly in front of the eel.
Avoid feeding any live feeders from a pet store which can lead to liver disease and makes me wonder if LFS was feeding feeders causing thinness.
Best time to feed is as soon as lights go out.